Syd turns 8!!!

My oldest child is 8 years old, that is so weird. It makes me feel slightly old, yet it also makes me look back on the past 8 years with a lot of love and pride (the good kind). I am so proud of my little girl. She has become such a pretty little gem. She is always so helpful and sweet. I love her so much!

I took her to get her ears pierced on her birthday. She was looking forward to this for nearly two years, so we did it right on her birthday. She was so brave. She didn't make a sound or even flinch!

We went to lunch afterwards and it was so fun to spend the morning together, just the two of us. Me and my big girl. When we got home, she helped me get ready for her party. She had an "ice cream" theme, so the plan was to make ice cream cone cupcakes! I made them, but they were a disaster. I filled the cones up just a little too much and they spilled out all over the place. Syd was so nice and lovingly just helped me make regular cupcakes instead. We frosted them in these bright colors that she just loved!

She invited a ton of friends from school, her cousin, and her long time best friend, Samantha.

They made ice cream sundae's and loved putting on their own toppings!

Syd with her best friend. These two have been very close since they were both babies.

The proud birthday girl!

Syd turned 8, and 8 is the age we decided to have the "big talk" with her. Andy, Syd, and I all got dressed up and went out to dinner at Tuscany. (The photo above is the chandelier at Tuscany.) We told her all about the beauty of how life is created, and it was fabulous! The idea behind telling her so young is this: If she hears the truth about everything before she starts to hear the wrong/distorted/worldly views on sex, she will have the confidence to ask us questions, know she can talk to us about it, and realize that she knows the truth. Because she knows how beautiful it is, she has the respect for it that it deserves.

Turning 8 is such a big age! In addition to all of this, Syd will be getting baptized later this month. She is very excited. We are proud of her for making this decision, as it begins her journey back to God. We have been teaching her what it means to be baptized. She is ready, and we are all so excited! Pics to come.